«One of the most exciting bands from Madagascar, Njava has been attracting international attention since their crowd-rousing set at the WOMAD Festival in 1995. Njava is mostly comprised of siblings — two sisters and three brothers — from the south Madagascar's Antemoto tribe. Njava brings a modern sensibility to the traditional music of their homeland. Initially an electric band, Njava began

«A fine songwriter and gifted singer with charisma to burn, Jimmy Cliff is one of the most talented musicians to come out of Jamaica. His best work was done with legendary producer Leslie Kong, and several of those songs are available here, including "Wonderful World Beautiful People," "You Can Get It if You Really Want It," "Many Rivers to Cross," and "Vietnam," all of which are indispensable

«Following the release of Gili Garabdi in spring 2005, which promptly landed at number 1 in the WMCE Top 10, Fanfare Ciocarlia travelled throughout Europe to record with musicians from the continent’s extended Romany community. Overcoming borders and visas, foreign tongues and rhythms, more than two dozen musicians from France to Bulgaria came together to create Queens and Kings an extraordinary

«Nilo Espinosa may not be the best-known player in jazz circles – or bossa nova, disco, funk, Latin soul, boogaloo, and rhumba – though he is one of the best at playing all of them (often in the same ensemble). Espinosa is a Peruvian sax and flute-playing legend who has been hard at it since 1959, when he was getting a conservatory education. In 1962 he made his debut with the Neptuno Orquesta,

«A world class, virtuoso percussionist, now in his mid fifties, Trilok has attracted a world class set of collaborators over a long career; these started with John McLaughlin in whose trio, Trilok flourished as the featured soloist for 4 years, other jazz greats continued this path – Joe Zawinul, Jan Garbarek, Don Cherry, Bill Evans, Pharoah Sanders, Dave Holland were all attracted to Trilok’s

«While Antonio Carlos Jobim is an essential figure in the music of Brazil, he also created a significant place for himself in American music as a great songwriter and a key figure in the tremendous popularity of bossa nova. Apart from his unique melodic gift, what makes Jobim’s work memorable is the complexity of mood he could evoke - the touch of sadness that colors the brightest bossa nova, the

«Co-produced by bassist Bill Laswell and Gambian griot Foday Musa Suso, this album delves into the West African roots that inspired their fusionary Mandingo project. Ancient Heart features recordings of both of Gambia's two major ethnic groups, the Mandinka and Fulani. But while the 11 songs are fairly true to tradition, the approach is updated by recording the musicians in ensembles rather than

«Ismael Lo, born in 1960, is the son of a Senegalese civil servant who loved American soul music. Lo grew up listening to stars like James Brown, Wicked Wilson Pickett, and Otis Redding. Lo built his first guitar from a cooking oil can, and learned to play harmonica and guitar together by nailing his harmonica to the wall. Lo was a guitarist for Super Diamano, a mbalax blues band, for five years

«The islands of Guadeloupe were colonized by the French in 1635. Under their watch the indigenous Carib Indians were routed and African slaves were brought onto the islands and forced to work in the burgeoning sugar industry. Several hundred years later, soon after the French abolished slavery on Guadeloupe in 1848, the island’s plantation owners had workers from one of France’s East Indian

«The Western image of bellydancing is associated with Greek or Middle Eastern restaurants, or some form of low-cost home seduction. The truth, of course, is something different. It's an ancient form of dance, requiring extremely complex body control to execute properly — and it's original name, baladi, has nothing to do with the belly, translating instead as "country dance." But whichever way you

Here is a nice selection of Corsican recorded music. Most of these artists are not strictly polyphonic groups, at least not any more, since they don’t sing a capella traditional Corsican polyphony. Some of them, by the way, like Petru Guelfucci, still have their roots in Corsican polyphony, notwithstanding their musical evolvement. Those who do not innovate and develop their singing are likely to

«There's definitely a concept of a journey about this album, but it's the kind of trip you'll be happy to make. Yes, it's gypsy music, coming from a Serbian home, but traveling everywhere — note the Indian inflection on "India Rroma," where guitar sounds like sitar, balancing a delicate violin line over chord changes that could almost have been lifted from "Get Back," filtered through, well,

«This fascinating album is part of the excellent Hemisphere series of world music. Latvia – together with Estonia and Lithuania – is one of the Baltic states that regained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 following an earlier period of independence between the first and second World Wars. The album speaks of the new confidence of a re-emergent country rediscovering the richness and

«Simon Nkabinde Mahlathini (nicknamed “the Lion of Soweto”) came to international attention via the 1985 sampler The Indestructible Beat of Soweto. He began to tour internationally with female singers the Mahotella Queens, although he has been playing and singing his brand of mbaqanga (Zulu pop music, heavily influenced by traditional singing styles) since the early ‘60s. Mahlathini started

«Recorded in a trio with bass-guitarist Etienne Mbappe and drummer Francis Lassus, Ray Lema’s new album, Paradox, is an eclectic mix of language and genre. It is hardly surprising to find such diversity from a musician who has always been frustrated by pigeonholes.RFI Musique: Let’s talk about a word that you seem fond of, “paradox”, since it is the title you gave your album.Ray Lema: We live in

«A rare compilation of Guinea’s modern musicians which confirms the country’s major musical status. Stars like Mory Kanté and Kanté Manfila rub shoulders with the excellent and little known Dourah Barry and others. Foudé Kouyaté’s contribution, “Sokho”, is a particular muscular dance track, synths and drum machines to the fore, but not omitting that quintessential Mande chorus.» (From S.

«There's a lot to like on Paris Combo's Attraction, the postmodern Parisian cabaret quintet's third album. As with previous efforts, the band updates the French chanson and gypsy swing tradition by adding a stylish hipster element that could be construed as French lounge music, but most of the arrangements for the album's 13 original tunes display a developing maturity that avoids gimmickry in

«The Quarteto Novo was a seminal group with a strong Northeastern accent. They brought the tradition of that region of Brazil and mixed it with the bebop jazz language, the result so influential that it broke cultural and physical barriers throughout the planet. […] Certainly modern, distinguished proponents of that genre, like Egberto Gismonti, have the Quarteto Novo to thank for that. In 1966,

«Omara Portuondo is the grand old lady of Cuban music. While her early recordings made her a star in Cuba, her participation in the 1996 album and video documentary, The Buena Vista Social Club, brought her to international attention. Her solo album, The Buena Vista Social Club Presents Omara Portuondo, released in 2000, reinforced her status as one of Cuba's greatest musical ambassadors.A native

«Malkit Singh was born in the village Husainpur near Jalandhar. He is the oldest child of five. He started singing at the age of four and attended a local school in his village where is talent was recognised. He then carried his talent through to college where he participated in competitions and won many awards. And now has taken his music from the Punjabi vernacular to cross-cultural experiments

«In this specially priced compilation, you'll find a variety of Nigerian Sounds from the late 50's to the 80's and showcases some of the finest artists including Tony Allen, Orlando Julius and of course Fela Kuti. Mixing jazz, soul, rock, psychedelia and more with traditional African sounds and rhythms, the music that emanates from this fine collection is a testament to the rich, modern musical

«Folk-soul chanteuse Ayo [her name means "joy" in Nigerian Yoruba] emerged as one of Europe's biggest new pop stars of 2006 with her breakthrough debut LP, Joyful. Born to a Nigerian father and Romanian gypsy mother in Cologne, West Germany, on September 14, 1980, as a child Ayo absorbed the musical traditions of her parentage as well as influences including American soul, reggae, and Afrobeat,

«Solid is the word that springs to mind for this au courant collection from the Long Ryders' mid-'80s heyday. It's a loaded word, often used to camouflage reservations, but here it's a positive testament to consistent craftsmanship and professionalism, of substance over surface flash. Best Of shows how the Long Ryders roped together a diverse array of influences, varied songwriter combinations

«The Maytals were key figures in reggae music. Comprised of leader Frederick "Toots" Hibbert, Nathaniel "Jerry" Matthias, and Raleigh Gordon, all natives of Kingston, the Maytals are said to have been the first group to use the word “reggae” in a song title with their Leslie Kong-produced “Do the Reggay.” Formed in the early '60s when ska was hot, the Maytals had a reputation for having strong,

«The traditional music of Algeria is combined with Spanish, Moroccan, French, and Arabic influences to create the dance-inspiring sounds of “the Prince of Rai,” Cheb Mami (born Khelifati Mohamed). Cheb Mami's music was described in a press release from the ARK 21 record label, as “Arabic rock & roll retaining virtues of traditional music but infused with urban urgency.” Reviewing his 1999 album,

A great party record (two-disc set). Have fun! «Radio One and Worldwide DJ Gilles Peterson is an authority on world music, and Brazilian music is the most happening global sound of the moment. This album has been compiled using Peterson's vast knowledge of what's been turning up the heat in clubs and on the radio. This is a two-disc edition, one containing Brazilian heritage and traditional

«A musical husband-and-wife duo that got its start in Mali, Amadou & Mariam met in 1975 at Mali's Bamako Institute for the Young Blind. Amadou (born Amadou Bagayoko in Bamako in October of 1954) began his musical career in 1968, and by 1974 joined Les Ambassadeurs du Motel, a leading group (which counted Salif Keita as a member) in his home country. He wound up at the aforementioned institute

«The international appeal of the blues comes home with a fiery flourish on the breakout album by youthful Serbian singer/guitarist Ana Popovic. Her 2001 debut disc Hush! effectively displayed her potential and Comfort to the Soul demonstrates she’s well on the road to realizing much of it. Popovic, who relocated to the Netherlands in 1999, is much more than just the best Belgrade-born blues act.

«Outside of a handful of reissues from Inca rock outfits like We All Together, Traffic Sound, and Laghonia, the Peruvian music of the rock & roll era has gone largely unrecognized and underappreciated in the rest of the world. Back to Peru, a superbly eclectic and comprehensive overview of the scene during its 1964 to 1974 heyday, goes far in correcting the error, casting a net over the best hard

«This 1962 set by Cal Tjader, recorded at the beginning of the bossa nova craze in the United States (released in the same year and on the same label as the smash Jazz Samba by Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd), has one of the most boring titles imaginable — which doesn't begin to describe the laid-back yet magical innovations in the grooves. Produced by Creed Taylor, the date was arranged and

«Born in Sermanu in 1955, Petru Guelfucci was always impassioned since tender childhood by the Corsican song. Already adolescent, he joined a folk group called “A manella”. In 1973, he met the talented Ghjuvan Paulu Poletti, one of the principal actors of the cultural movement of the Seventies in Corsica. Shortly after that they formed a band of young people. This band, with, inter alia, Ghjuvan

«Sally Nyolo is one of the most successful vocalists to emerge from the jungles of Cameroun. Although she's lived in Paris since the age of 13, Nyolo remains tied to the tribal rhythms and musical traditions of her birthplace. As she explained during a 1998 interview, "I try to be as rootsy as the (Eton) language would like me to be because it's a language we speak with images… I try to be like

«For those unaware of the greatness of Venezuelan conductor Aldemaro Romero, we could compare him with the better known Esquivel. Romero and Esquivel had more than one thing in common. In addition to being piano virtuosos with a futuristic sense for popular music revitalized with vocal arrangements and original instrumentation, they each experimented in the recording studio and maintained a

«Born and educated in Beirut, Fayrouz (alternative spellings: Fairuz, Fairouz, Feyrouz, Feiruz) began her musical career as a chorus member at the Lebanese Radio Station. In the late 1950s her talent as a singer became fully acknowledged. Met with unprecedented enthusiasm, Fayrouz's early songs featured the singer's distinct vocal timbre and lyrics expressing romantic love and nostalgia for

This long-out-of-print Italian compilation is a great introduction to Malagasy music, featuring as it does some of the most interesting artists of this isolated and fascinating country’s contemporary scene, like Tarika, D’Gary, Solo Razaf, Madame Masy and many others. A real must for all lovers of inventive neotraditional music. For more info about (and more music of) some of the artists

«As much myth as musician, singer/songwriter Shelagh McDonald seemed poised to emerge as a major voice in British folk music when she abruptly vanished mere months after the release of her breakthrough LP. Born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, McDonald arrived in London sometime in the late '60s. While performing at the Troubadour, she befriended fellow singer/songwriter Keith Christmas, who

«The Sundanese are Indonesia's second largest ethnic group. They live in the province of West Java (also called “Sunda” by many foreigners), encompassing the interior highlands, the coastal areas, and Cirebon, a culturally distinct region. The boundary between West and Central Java lies at the eastern foothills of the Priangan Highlands, and a wide band of west-central Java from north to south

«Cassandra Wilson has garnered a deserving reputation for her soulful, visionary reads of songs by legendary composers old and new, from Robert Johnson to Van Morrison. On Glamoured, Wilson composed half the album, and her songs are as provocative and deserve the same weight of grace critically afforded her covers. She uses her trademark fluid, smoky delivery to redefine songs such as the old

«Take the propulsive backbeat shuffle of Jamaican ska and blend it with soulful Afro-Cuban son, and the result is Ska Cubano.The band is the creation of London promoter Peter Scott, who came up with the brilliant idea of blending two of the Caribbean’s most influential music styles. He brought London ska artist Natty Bo to Santiago de Cuba, where they collaborated with local musicians to create

«Lobi Traoré was born in 1961 in Bakaridianna, on the left bank of the Niger, some 20 kilometers from Ségou. He's the son of Samba and Nana Djiré, both singers in the komo secret society. As such, Lobi was an "initiated" directly at birth. Generally in komo, men become true adults quite late. Before circumcision, the adolescent joins the komo, and for three or four months undergoes tests of

«The Taksim Trio gave one of the standout showcases of last year's WOMEX in Seville. Of the three instrumentalists, Hüsnü Şenlendirici, has the highest profile as one of Turkey's top clarinettists – his last album sold over 160,000 copies and topped the Turkish charts for weeks. But kanun (zither) player Aytaç Doğan and electric saz player Ismail Tunçbilek form a beautifully balanced ensemble in

«The North Indian drums know as the tabla were said to have been invented in the 13th century by Amir Khusrau, a disciple of the Sufi saint Hazrat Nizemuddin Aluya. At the time, Khusrau sawed a pakhawaj (a single two-headed wooden drum) in two. Though no one may never know exactly why Khusrau felt it necessary it to saw a pakhawaj in half, his act gave birth to the tabla. Since that time, the

Pascal Lokua Kanza was born in Zaire, the first of eight children. After his father died tragically while captaining a ship at sea, Kanza helped provide for his family by taking part-time jobs while he was still in school. Setting aside a few hours each day to teach himself guitar, he soon began playing with friends in local bands. As he got older, his approach to music grew more serious. After

An amazing compilation! Guaranteed: you’ll love Chicha! «Chicha started out in the late 60’s, in the oil-boom cities of the Peruvian Amazon. Cumbias Amazonicas, as they were first known, were loosely inspired by Colombian cumbias but incorporated the distinctive pentatonic scales of Andean melodies, some Cuban guajiras, and the psychedelic sounds of surf guitars, wah-wah pedals, farfisa

«Every eight years, it seems, Jean-Luc Ponty picks himself up, gives himself a good shake, and switches direction. In 1967, he made his first life-changing visit to the U.S.; 1975 found him going solo permanently as a jazz/rock icon; 1983 marked a switch to sequencer music; and in 1991, Ponty discovered African music. Taking advantage of the huge interest in African music in France, Ponty

A great and very hard to find Syliphone (SLP 73) release from Guinée-Conakry. More to come!«Guineans celebrated the dawn of a new era in 1958, waking up to their newly won independence. But once the celebrations had died down, President Sékou Touré was faced with a harsh reality. After years of French cultural influence, the former colony had totally lost touch with its musical heritage and its

«Martin Stephenson's English brand of folk/roots rock underwent a cultural translation of sorts on Salutation Road. For this album, he traveled to the U.S. to work with Los Angeles-based producer/guitarist Pete Anderson and engineer Dusty Wakeman. At this point, Anderson and Wakeman were best known for their involvement in the burgeoning Bakersfield sound of the 1980s – especially their work

«A descendent of Italian immigrants, Stephane Sansévérino was born on French soil in 1962. Thanks to his father's work, young Stephane was offered limitless travel opportunities throughout his early years. He was exposed to performers from all over the world, and by the age of 20 had fixed his sights on a career in performance. Initially focusing on theater, he studied comic acting for a number

«Arriving months before this Blood & Fire compilation was a similar release from Soul Jazz Records. Studio One Soul was just that, a collection of 18 covers of American soul tunes by the famous Jamaican label's finest '60s and '70s artists. Darker Than Blue however, has a distinct advantage over its predecessor. As it is not tied to the output of any one particular label, it manages to come up

«The word ‘Kutumba’ holds a special meaning in the Nepali language. It stands for a unique bond amongst community members. As their name, Kutumba is all about bringing together traditional folk tunes and instruments with new and improvised sounds and ideas. Kutumba is a folk instrumental ensemble, group of seven professionals from Kathmandu. Having come together for the preservation of their

«When Foday Musa Suso teamed with drummer Hamid Drake in the ‘80s to form the Mandingo Griot Society, the usage of kora and the American drum kit was a novelty, and successfully but precariously placed the traditions of African village music and jazz oriented polyrhythms in a new place. Suso and the veteran drummer Jack DeJohnette team up in duets that do not juxtapose, but complement the

«Though Cara Luft, a founding member of the Wailin' Jennys, was replaced by Annabelle Chvostek, the band's tight harmonies and pretty folk songs haven't changed at all on their second album, Firecracker. In fact, they've even gotten better. Chvostek's voice is seductively low and versatile, and it blends well with and adds a lot of strength and depth to the higher ranges that Ruth Moody and Nicky

A great soundtrack to a great movie! Check’em out! «Dave Grusin adopts a superb white funk sound, incredibly crisp and clean. The orchestra on this album are unbelievably tight, and very funky. It's a mix of short funk themes and longer strings-laden tracks. The theme is superb, and much covered, and check out "Flight Of The Condor".» (Blaxploitation) «In the 1970s, when prominent movie

«The role of the Arabic, lute-like, stringed instrument, the oud, has been revolutionalized through the playing of Anouar Brahem. While used in the past to accompany vocalists, the oud is used by Brahem as an imaginative solo instrument. In 1988, Tunisian newspaper, "Tunis-Hebdo", wrote, "If we had to elect the musician of the 80s, we would have, without the least hesitation, chosen Anouar Brahem

«The Steel Drum, or Pan, is a unique instrument, and one of the most recently invented. It is a skillfully hammered 55-gallon oil drum which has been carefully tuned to produce tones. The Steel Drum carries the full chromatic range of notes, and can produce just about any type of music you can think of! During British Colonial rule of Trinidad in the 1800's, hand drums were used as a call for

«The traditional sounds of Senegal are combined with contemporary world music influences to create the smooth-edged global fusion of Paris-based guitarist Wasis Diop. His song, "African Dream," was a top forty hit in England, while, his soundtrack for his brother, Djibril Diop Mambety's film, Hyenes, was an international success. USA Today praised Diop for his "sensual rhythms, gorgeous harmonies

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